Preview

Write An Essay On The Sputnik

Better Essays
Open Document
Open Document
The Sputnik, the world’s first artificial satellite, was launched by the Soviet Union and sparked a change in history that would greatly alter two already feuding places - the USA and the USSR. The “Space Age” or “Space Race” was a race between Russia and the United States for the supremacy of outer space. The Sputnik satellite led to additional funding for the space program in the United States, and the formation of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). The creation of the Sputnik I affected both the USA, the Soviet Union, and the rest of the world by leading to sending the first humans into space and onto the moon, the creation of NASA, other space exploration devices such as the Mars rover, and new technologies such as …show more content…

The Soviet Union reported that a week into orbit, she was euthanized and died painlessly. BBC news reported in 2002 that this may have been untrue. Laika almost definitely died of panic and overheating when humidity and temperature went up after lift off.

Sergei Korolev was the designer of the Sputnik, in addition to the first manned spacecraft. Korolev was from the Soviet Union, but a poor Communist and was arrested and worked hard labor for a year, but was rescued by a friend and assigned to a top-secret engineering project in Moscow. This helped pave the way for his request to build a non-military satellite to be approved on July 30, 1955. By August 1957, his spaceship was ready.

After the Sputnik’s success was transmitted back to Earth by a series of blips, the Soviets were stunned and thrilled. Unfortunately, in the United States, everyone was indeed stunned but also afraid. They worried that the USSR’s ability to launch a satellite also translated to them being able to launch a nuclear missile. This was in the middle of the cold war, and a terrifying thought, but it also made the Americans to try even harder for the success, yet subsequent failure, of their ship, the


You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    The space race first began between the Soviet Union and the United States around 1957 when the Soviet Union launched their first satellite, Sputnik 1, into space to orbit the earth. It ended around 1975 with the Apollo–Soyuz Test Project, a joint space mission between the Soviet Union and the United States. The space race compares to Animal Farm, because of how the Soviet Union failed multiple times in building an aircraft that could reach the moon just like how the animals in the book failed twice in building the windmill. It is considered that the United States won the space race in 1969 when Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin landed on the moon with Michael Collins circling above in the Apollo 11 space mission. This essay compares the Soviet Union 's attempts to build a functioning aircraft to reach the moon during the Soviet space race to the animals in Animal Farm attempting to build a working windmill.…

    • 1319 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    How did Americans react to the launch of Sputnik I and the Soviet Union during the space race? On October 4, 1957, America’s fears went into orbit as the Soviet Union launched its first artificial Earth satellite into space. This was quickly followed by Sputnik II, famously containing a canine passenger, Laika, and was then dramatically surpassed by the first human in space, Yuri Gagarin, in 1961. The US, in contrast, failed to respond effectively taking several attempts before launching its own…

    • 83 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    The Soviet Union, on October 4, 1957, launched, Sputnik, the first satellite, into space. This has commonly been noted as the event that distinctly marks the beginning of the “new math” revolution. The launch of Sputnik created the awareness that the United States was behind in the era of developments in science and technology. Feeling an awareness to gain reign in the field of aeronautics and technology, both United States Presidents Eisenhower and Kennedy called for added spending on education. The added spending was directed in the areas of math and science for study and growth, which led to progress in technology. Out of this call came the “new math” era.…

    • 111 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Space Race Project 1

    • 542 Words
    • 6 Pages

    It was through that the United States was no longer safe behind its ocean barriers. The Soviet Union could launch missiles directly on United States. The Space Race    April 12, 1961 the Soviets launch another satellite, Sputnik 2. This time they were able to put a dog in orbit around the earth.…

    • 542 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Vanguard Project History

    • 2257 Words
    • 10 Pages

    Rockefeller’s statement reflects that, despite great confidence, Washington was aware of the conflict emerging. A development in American science would directly counteract one in Soviet science (and vice versa). The military connotations of these developments were also understood, as military review of the program noted its potential in ballistic use. It was understood that the Vanguard project’s significance lay far beyond the physical satellite it planned to place in orbit.…

    • 2257 Words
    • 10 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    The Space Race was the closets the United States has come to losing it superpower title to other nations. The Space race was a twelve-year competition between the United States and the Soviet Union to explore the Solar System. This race began on October 4, 1957 when the Soviet Union deployed an artificial satellite called, Sputnik to orbit in space. Sputnik created a sense of fear in the United States that the Soviet Union had “reached the heavens” with the use of technological advancements. The President of the Soviet Union, Khrushchev used Sputnik as a symbol of how powerful “social superiority” was in comparison to capitalism. On January 31, 1958, the United States launched a satellite into orbit called, Explorer 1. Explorer 1 collected…

    • 322 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Space Race Research Paper

    • 538 Words
    • 3 Pages

    The Space Race started at the beginning of the 1950s as World War II came to an end. It space travel became important as The United States continued to compete with the Soviet Union. The Space Race officially took flight on October 4, 1957 when a Soviet R-7 was launched into space. This satellite is also known as Sputnik. Sputnik caused much upheaval in the United States as Americans were not pleased by the idea that they had not been the first country to send something into orbit. Sputnik continued to gain importance when it was discovered that the missile was “seemingly capable of delivering a nuclear warhead into U.S. air space--made gathering intelligence about Soviet military activities particularly urgent.” (The Space Race).…

    • 538 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Understanding the history of Neil Armstrong’s Moon walk is not complete without reference to the Cold War and the Soviet space achievements which ran parallel to those of the United States. The Cold War was the catalyst that would turn the highly speculative and romanticized vision of space travel into an unquestionable reality. Competition between the United States and the Soviet Union was fierce. The two world superpowers were engaged in a race to see who would be able to successfully send their men to walk across the surface of the Moon first. The USSR’s launch of the Sputnik sattellite, and Laika the dog in 1957 marked the beginnings of the Space Race. The U.S. quickly countered in 1958 by sending satellites of it’s own, the Explorer and Vanguard and organizing the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). In effect, the Soviet Union would set the bar for which the United States would aim to surpass. In 1961, Yuri Gagarin of the USSR became the first man to orbit the earth. This was also the year of John F. Kennedy’s inauguration, when he commits the United States to the goal of landing the first man on the moon before the completion of the decade. When John F. Kennedy was assassinated in 1963, it became unclear whether this task would be possible for the country to reach.…

    • 755 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Space Race Research Paper

    • 723 Words
    • 3 Pages

    During the time right after the cold war, the United States and the Soviet Union became engaged in a “Space Race” to see which country could get a man on the moon first and ultimately claim space for their nation. The Soviet Union led the way by sending the first satellite into space and then the first human. On April 12, 1961, Yuri Gagarin was the first human to go into space and make a complete orbit around the earth. Yuri was a Russian Soviet pilot and cosmonaut. He became an international celebrity over night. He returned to earth as a national hero in his country. His flight is still the shortest flight, 108 minutes from launch to landing. Although Yuri moved up the ranks in the Soviet Air Force, he was banned from the space program.…

    • 723 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Space Race Research Paper

    • 812 Words
    • 4 Pages

    The Space and Arms race was an event during the Cold War. It was a test to see…

    • 812 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    John F. Kennedy (JFK)

    • 1013 Words
    • 5 Pages

    The Soviet Union was much more advanced in terms of space technology. Kennedy was eager to compete against the Soviet Union’s space victories. Scrambling to catch up, the United States launched its own satellite, Explorer 1.This was the start of the “Space Race.” On May 25, 1961, Kennedy made his bold goal public "landing a man on the moon and returning him safely to the earth by the end of the decade.” He asked Congress for $7- $9 billion to fund the space program. This led to the improvement of American space technology. In February 1962, John Glenn became the first American to orbit Earth. As space exploration continued through the 1960s, the United States was on its way to the moon. Although Kennedy didn’t live to see the day, his goal of landing a man on the moon was reached. On July 20, 1969 American astronauts Neil Armstrong, Michael Collins, and Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin Jr. set off on the Apollo 11 for the moon. This was the memorable moment that Neil Armstrong stepped on to the lunar surface, and said the unforgettable words: "That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind." This was a turning point in human history; it was the greatest technological achievement of the century and possibly in all history. The true significance was that this gave people at…

    • 1013 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    The Space Race was huge to society during his youth, and I thought it was awesome to hear about. It was really interesting to me that with little technology, countries were able to send men into space successfully. My grandpa was a teenager at this time so he couldn’t remember everything that happened, but he told me the important parts. When it came to the space race he told me, “when the Russians were first into space, it was a pretty big deal. Nobody in America liked them, so we had to do better. So we decided to go send our own guys into space to see if we could be better than the Russians.” He also told me that the Space Race was a massive rivalry that stood between the United States and the then- Soviet Union which lasted for many years. During recent times, NASA sent a space shuttle, Atlantis, containing people in 2010. The Atlantis space shuttle is the last shuttle that NASA’s program is going to send into space. Over the years, space travel has become more and more advanced. But NASA has went to more of a satellite-base program, which shows why they are going to stop sending humans into…

    • 712 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Out of this article, it goes to show that scientific research has come a long way and has evolved in many different forms. There have been many different influential individuals, all of whom had different professions (some of them not being in the scientific area of research). Nonetheless, the idea that technological advances weren’t always present in the United States may shock some individuals growing up in today’s society. The idea that the Soviet Union’s Sputnik launching was what encouraged and started the invention, mediation, and creation of these technological advances is something that intrigues me. The main reason why is because there have been so many things that have influenced many different aspects of the U.S., and knowing that…

    • 361 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Space Race

    • 297 Words
    • 2 Pages

    i. Fear and astonishment of the US, because they inferred since the Soviet Union had rockets powerful enough to launch a satellite then they had rockets powerful enough to launch atomic bombs on the US…

    • 297 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Space Race

    • 768 Words
    • 2 Pages

    On October 4, 1957, the Soviet Union launched the first satellite into space, The Sputnik I. This was detrimental to the U.S. because it meant that they were losing the space race. The Soviets showed the U.S. that they now had the capability to launch satellites and nuclear warheads into space. America quickly answered back with the launch of Explorer I, which was the first American made satellite to orbit around Earth. This achievement by the U.S. led Eisenhower to form the National Aeronautics and Space Admission (NASA). The organization was founded to study and build space exploration vehicles and scientific experiments. Soon after the formation of NASA, the Soviets launched the first man into the orbit of Earth, heating up the space race. Nearly a month later, NASA launched Alan Shepard into space, making him the second man to exit Earth’s atmosphere.…

    • 768 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays